JP3224845U - Attachments for vending machines - Google Patents

Abstract

[PROBLEMS] To provide an attachment for a vending machine capable of selling a product that does not reach a prescribed height without modifying the vending machine, and which can be easily attached and detached by a person such as a route delivery staff. provide. An attitude control plate is provided rotatably between a projecting position protruding into a product passage and a retreat position pushed open by a falling product and retracted from the product passage, and controlling a posture of the product. An attachment 1 for a vending machine having a serpentine-type merchandise rack provided with a member 13, the attachment 1 having a width regulating member 2 for regulating the width of a commodity passage 11 and a fixing member 3 for fixing the attachment 1. The width regulating member 2 is swingably supported by the fixing member 3 and satisfies the following expression [1]. t ≧ T1max−D (1), t: thickness of width regulating member 2, T1max: maximum value of depth of product passage 11, D: diameter of product [selection diagram] FIG.

Description

  The present invention relates to an attachment for a vending machine. More specifically, the present invention relates to an attachment for a can / bottle beverage vending machine having a serpentine type product rack provided with a posture control plate.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a can / bottle beverage vending machine equipped with a serpentine product rack has been known as a can / bottle beverage vending machine that sells products such as canned beverages and PET bottled beverages (Patent Document 1). .

  As shown in FIG. 8, generally, a posture control plate 13 for controlling the posture of a product 12 such as a canned beverage is provided in a product passage 11 of a serpentine product rack 10. The attitude control plate 13 is urged by a torsion coil spring or the like so as to protrude toward the product passage 11, and is pushed open by the falling product 12 and retracts from the product passage 11. At this time, the product 12 has a function of correcting the posture of the product 12 to a sideways posture, absorbing the falling energy of the product 12, and reducing the falling speed.

JP 2001-188956 A

  However, even if the attitude control plate 13 is provided, if the height of the product 12 is extremely low, the product 12 may not be able to maintain the sideways attitude, so that the height of the product 12 may reach a specified height such as a tuna can. It was difficult to sell goods that did not.

  The present invention makes it possible to sell products that do not reach the specified height without remodeling the vending machine, and it can be easily installed and removed by hand such as route delivery staff etc. The purpose is to provide.

The attachment for a vending machine of the present invention is provided rotatably between a projecting position protruding into a product passage and a retreat position pushed open by a falling product and retracted from the product passage. An attachment for a vending machine having a serpentine type product rack provided with a posture control plate for controlling
The attachment has a width regulating member that regulates the width of the product passage, and a fixing member that fixes the attachment.
The width regulating member is swingably supported by the fixing member,
It is characterized by satisfying the following expression [1].
t ≧ T1 _max −D [1]
t: thickness T1 _max of the width regulating member: maximum value of the depth of the product passage D: diameter of the product

  According to the vending machine attachment of the present invention, it is possible to sell products that do not reach the prescribed height without modifying the vending machine. Further, the attachment for a vending machine of the present invention can be easily attached and detached by a person such as a route delivery staff.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of the vending machine attachment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which the vending machine attachment of FIG. It is the figure which looked at the merchandise passage of the 2nd row and subsequent rows from right above. It is an outline sectional view explaining the state where goods entered between the meandering board and the width control member. FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing another example of the vending machine attachment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a schematic sectional view showing a state in which the vending machine attachment of FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic side view showing still another example of the vending machine attachment of the present invention. It is an outline perspective view showing an example of a serpentine type product rack. FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a product path in the front row of the serpentine type product rack of FIG. 8.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, but the present invention is not limited to the following examples.

  The attachment of the present invention is provided so as to be rotatable between a projecting position protruding into the product passage and a retracted position pushed open by the falling product and retracted from the product passage, and a posture control plate for controlling the posture of the product. This is an attachment for a vending machine having a serpentine-type product rack provided with.

≪ Serpentine product rack ≫
First, a serpentine type product rack to which the attachment of the present invention is attached will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 8 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of a serpentine type product rack. FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a surface (XZ plane) orthogonal to the Y-axis direction of the merchandise passage in the front row of the serpentine merchandise rack of FIG. 8, and FIG. 9A shows a state where no merchandise is stored. FIG. 9B shows a state in which a product is stored. 8 and 9, 10 is a serpentine type product rack, 11 is a product passage, 12 is a product such as a canned beverage, 13 is an attitude control plate, 14 is a product input port, 15 is a meandering plate, 16 is a tray, and 17 is a tray. It is an unloading mechanism. 8 and 9, the X-axis direction is the front-rear direction (depth direction) of the vending machine, the Y-axis direction is the left-right direction (width direction) of the vending machine, and the Z-axis direction is the vertical direction (height) of the vending machine. Direction).

  As shown in FIG. 8, a serpentine-type product rack (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as a “product rack”) 10 has a plurality of meandering product passages 11 in the X-axis direction. The product passage 11 is formed between a pair of meandering plates 15 that are installed facing a pair of rack side plates (not shown) facing each other along the Y-axis direction with a half-pitch shift in the Z-axis direction. In FIG. 8, there are three rows of product passages 11 along the X-axis direction, and the rightmost product passage 11 in the drawing is the frontmost product passage 11. The upper end of the commodity passage 11 in the front row is a commodity insertion port 14, and the commodity 12 is directly introduced. At the upper end entrance of the commodity passage 11 in the second and subsequent rows, a tray 16 connected to the commodity insertion port 14 is provided, and the commodity 12 is inserted through the tray 16. Further, at the lower end exit of each product passage 11, a product carrying-out mechanism 17 is provided.

  The meandering plate 15 is rotatably provided between a projecting position that protrudes into the product passage 11 and a retracted position that is pushed open by the falling product 12 and retracts from the product passage 11 to control the posture of the product. An attitude control plate 13 is provided. In this example, as shown in FIG. 9A, the posture control plates 13 are alternately arranged in the vertical direction with the product passage 11 interposed therebetween. The attitude control plate 13 is biased by a torsion coil spring or the like so as to protrude toward the product passage 11 at a valley of the meandering plate 15. Then, as shown in FIG. 9B, the product 12 is pushed open by the falling product 12 and retreated from the product passage 11. At this time, the product 12 has a function of correcting the posture of the product 12 to a sideways posture, absorbing the falling energy of the product 12, and reducing the falling speed.

  In the serpentine-type merchandise rack of FIG. 8, the merchandise 12 is inserted from the merchandise insertion port 14 in a sideways posture, and falls down the merchandise passage 11. The falling speed of the commodity 12 falling in the commodity passage 11 is reduced by the meandering passage, and the posture is corrected in the process of pushing and opening the posture control plate 13, and at the same time, the falling speed is reduced, and the drop impact is reduced. The first inserted product 12 is locked by a stopper member (not shown) of the product unloading mechanism 17 and becomes the first product in the sales order. 11 is stored. The goods stored in the goods passage 11 are cooled or heated to a temperature suitable for sale by the cooling / heating unit and stored.

  The merchandise rack 10 may have a movable side plate on one rack side plate (not shown) side that can be approached or separated from the one rack side plate. When the movable side plate is provided, the width (distance in the Y-axis direction) of the product passage 11 can be adjusted according to the height of the product 12 by moving the movable side plate.

≪Attachment≫
<First embodiment>
The attachment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing the attachment of the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which the attachment of FIG. 1 is attached to the commodity passages in the second and subsequent rows, and showing the same surface as FIG. 9. FIG. 3 is a view of the product passages in the second and subsequent rows as viewed from directly above. FIG. 3A shows a state in which an attachment is mounted, and FIG. 3B shows a state in which the attachment is not mounted. 1 to 3, reference numeral 1 denotes an attachment, 2 denotes a width regulating member, 3 denotes a fixing member, 4 denotes a rivet, 5 denotes a side wall, and 6 denotes a magnet.

  The attachment 1 shown in FIG. 1 has a width regulating member 2 for regulating the width of the product passage 11 and a fixing member 3 for fixing the attachment 1. The width regulating member 2 is swingably supported by the fixing member 3. In the example of FIG. 1, the width regulating member 2 is swingably supported by the rivet 4 in a direction parallel to the width direction of the fixing member 3 (the direction of the arrow in FIG. 1). The support method is not limited to the support by the rivets 4.

In the example of FIG. 1, the width regulating member 2 is a long member having flexibility, and regulates the width of the product passage 11. That is, as shown in FIG. 3B, the width of the product passage 11 in a state where the attachment is not mounted is L1. When the attachment 1 is attached to the product passage 11, as shown in FIG. 3A, the width of the product passage 11 is regulated by the width regulating member 2, and becomes the width L3 represented by the following equation [3].
L3 = L1-L2 [3]
L1: the width of the product passage 11 without the attachment attached L2: the width of the width regulating member 2 L3: the width of the product passage 11 with the attachment attached

  Here, as described above, the width regulating member 2 is swingably supported by the fixing member 3. Therefore, even if the fixing member 3 is not fixed in a desired state as shown in FIG. 3A, for example, in a state where the width direction of the fixing member 3 is parallel to the Y-axis direction, the width regulation is not performed. The member 2 hangs down in the vertical direction, and the width of the product passage 11 can be uniformly regulated to L3.

  The width L2 of the width regulating member 2 may be appropriately set according to the height of the product 12. The length of the width regulating member 2 may be appropriately set according to the depth of the product passage 11. In this example, the width regulating member 2 is formed of a flexible member such as a resin plate, but is not limited thereto, and may be formed of other materials such as wood, a metal plate, and plastic cardboard. . It is preferable that the width regulating member 2 has flexibility, since attachment and detachment of the attachment 1 become easy. As shown in FIG. 8, the commodity passage 11 in the front row has a commodity insertion port 14 at its upper end, so that the attachment 1 can be inserted and mounted from almost directly above. However, since the upper end entrances of the commodity passages 11 in the second and subsequent rows are located at a position deep from the commodity insertion port 14, it is difficult to insert the attachment 1 from almost directly above. For this reason, after the leading end of the width regulating member 2 reaches the upper end entrance of the product passage 11 by, for example, making it along the tray 16, it is inserted into the product passage 11. When the width regulating member 2 has flexibility, the width regulating member 2 is curved, so that the leading end of the width regulating member 2 can be easily inserted into the product passage 11 after reaching the upper end entrance of the product passage 11. Can be done. The same applies to the case where the attachment 1 is detached. When the width regulating member 2 has flexibility, the width regulating member 2 is curved, thereby restricting the width of the commodity passage 11, particularly the width of the commodity passage 11 in the second and subsequent rows. The member 2 can be easily pulled out.

The width regulating member 2 satisfies the following expression [1]. Further, the width regulating member 2 preferably satisfies the following formula [1 ′] and the following formula [2].
t ≧ T1 _max −D [1]
t> T1 _max −D [1 ′]
t <T2 [2]
t: thickness T1 of the width regulating member 2 _max : maximum value of the depth T1 of the product passage 11 D: diameter T2 of the product 12: interval between lines connecting adjacent valleys of the meandering plate 15 forming the product passage 11

  As shown in FIG. 2, when the attachment 1 is mounted, the posture control plate 13 is slightly pushed open by the width regulating member 2. Here, in order to correct the posture of the commodity 12 falling in the commodity passage 11 and reduce the falling speed, it is preferable that the posture control plate 13 is not pushed and opened as much as possible. Therefore, the thickness t of the width regulating member 2 is preferably thin. However, if the thickness t of the width regulating member 2 is too small, as shown in FIG. 4, the leading end of the falling commodity 12 enters between the meandering plate 15 and the width regulating member 2, and in the middle of the commodity passage 11. Can be clogged. This possibility increases as the degree of flexibility of the width regulating member 2 increases. In the present invention, by satisfying the above-mentioned formula [1], preferably the above-mentioned formula [1 '], the product 12 is less likely to enter between the meandering plate 15 and the width regulating member 2, and the product 12 is in the middle of the product path 11. The likelihood of clogging can be reduced. On the other hand, if the thickness t of the width regulating member 2 is too large, the degree to which the posture control plate 13 is pushed and opened increases, and it becomes difficult to correct the posture of the commodity 12 falling down the commodity passage 11 and reduce the falling speed. In the present invention, preferably, by satisfying the above expression [2], the posture correction of the product 12 and the reduction of the falling speed can be effectively performed.

  If the diameter D of the product 12 is not uniform, D may be set to a value between the maximum value and the minimum value of the product diameter, but it is preferable to set the maximum value of the product diameter.

  The fixing member 3 is a rectangular member in the example of FIG. 1, and fixes the attachment 1. In the example of FIG. 1, the fixing member 3 has a magnet 6 near the front end of the back surface, and is fixed to the tray 16 by the magnet 6, as shown in FIG. The width of the fixing member 3 is not particularly limited, but is preferably equal to the width L2 of the width regulating member 2 particularly when the fixing member 3 is attached to the commodity passages 11 in the second and subsequent rows. When the width of the fixing member 3 is L2, the width of the product passage on the tray 16 that connects the upper end entrance of the product passage 11 and the product insertion port 14 is regulated, and the product 12 is placed in a correct sideways posture, for example, the product 12 The product can enter the product passage 11 with the central axis in a posture parallel to the Y-axis direction. As shown in FIG. 1, when the fixing member 3 has the side wall 5, it is possible to more reliably cause the product 12 to enter the product passage 11 in a correct sideways posture. The length of the fixing member 3 may be appropriately set in accordance with the distance from the product inlet 14 to the upper end entrance of the product passage 11. In this example, the fixing member 3 is formed of a flexible member such as a resin plate, but is not limited thereto, and may be formed of another material such as wood, a metal plate, or plastic cardboard.

  Next, the attachment / detachment method of the attachment will be described by taking as an example the attachment / detachment method for the second and subsequent product passages 11. As shown below, the attachment of the present invention can be easily attached and detached by a person such as a route delivery staff.

  The attachment 1 is preferably inserted near one of the rack side plates (or the rack side plate not having the movable side plate when having the movable side plate) in the product passage 11. Specifically, the top end of the product passage 11, preferably the posture control plate 13, is hardly pushed open by the tip of the width regulating member 2 along the tray 16, for example. After reaching the upper end entrance near the center line (in the axial direction), it is inserted into the product passage 11. As shown in FIG. 2, when the width regulating member 2 is completely inserted into the product passage 11, the fixing member 3 is fixed to the tray 16 by the magnet 6. Thereby, the attachment 1 is in the mounted state. As shown in FIG. 2, when the attachment 1 is mounted, the posture control plate 13 is slightly pushed open by the width regulating member 2. As described above, when the width regulating member 2 has flexibility, the width regulating member 2 can be easily inserted into the commodity passage 11 particularly in the commodity passages 11 in the second and subsequent rows, which is preferable.

  The attachment 1 can be easily removed by releasing the fixing of the fixing member 3 by the magnet 6 and pulling out the width regulating member 2 from the product passage 11. As described above, it is preferable that the width regulating member 2 be flexible because the width regulating member 2 can be easily pulled out from the product passage 11 particularly in the second and subsequent rows of the product passages 11.

<Second embodiment>
This example is the same as the first embodiment except that a hook 7 is provided instead of the magnet 6. Hereinafter, differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described, and description of the same portions will be omitted. FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view showing the attachment of the present embodiment, and FIG. 6 is a schematic sectional view showing a state in which the attachment of FIG.

  In the example illustrated in FIG. 5, the fixing member 3 has a hook portion 7 that hooks on a meandering plate 15 that forms the product passage 11 or a tray 16 that is provided at an upper end entrance of the product passage 11. Then, as shown in FIG. 6, the hook 7 of the fixing member 3 is hooked on the meandering plate 15 in the frontmost product passage 11 and on the tray 16 in the second and subsequent product passages 11. The attachment 1 is in a mounted state.

<Third embodiment>
This example is the same as the first embodiment, except that the width regulating member 2 is formed of two resin plates and an elastic member. Hereinafter, differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described, and description of the same portions will be omitted. FIG. 7 is a schematic side view showing the attachment of the present embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the width regulating member 2 is sandwiched between the two opposite resin plates 8, 8 'and the resin plates 8, 8', and has an elasticity capable of following the surface shape of the resin plates 8, 8 '. It has a member 9. In the present embodiment, a desired thickness t can be ensured by using a thinner plate, and the elastic member 9 follows the surface shape of the resin plates 8, 8 '. Therefore, the degree of flexibility of the width regulating member 2 can be further increased. Further, only one resin plate 8 is supported by the fixing member 3 with the rivet 4, so that the degree of flexibility of the width regulating member 2 can be further increased.

  The elastic member 9 is not particularly limited as long as it can follow the surface shape of the resin plates 8 and 8 ', and examples thereof include a plate member having a hollow structure such as a plastic cardboard. A plurality of plate-shaped members having a hollow structure may be used by laminating them. It is preferable that the plate-like member having the hollow structure is fixed to the resin plates 8 and 8 'so that the axis of the cavity extends along the width direction of the width regulating member 2 (the direction perpendicular to the paper surface). The method for fixing the elastic member 9 to the resin plates 8 and 8 'is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include fixing with an adhesive.

1: Attachment, 2: Width regulating member, 3: Fixed member, 4: Rivet, 5: Side wall, 6: Magnet, 7: Hook, 8, 8 ': Resin plate, 9: Elastic member, 10: Serpentine type Commodity rack (commodity rack), 11: Commodity aisle, 12: Commodity, 13: Attitude control plate, 14: Commodity slot, 15: meandering plate, 16: Tray, 17: Carry-out mechanism

Claims (10)

Serpentine provided with a posture control plate that is rotatably provided between a projecting position that protrudes into a product passage and a retracted position that is pushed open by a falling product and retracts from the product passage, and controls a posture of the product. An attachment for a vending machine having a type product rack,
The attachment has a width regulating member that regulates the width of the product passage, and a fixing member that fixes the attachment.
The width regulating member is swingably supported by the fixing member,
An attachment for a vending machine, characterized by satisfying the following expression [1].
t ≧ T1 _max −D [1]
t: thickness T1 _max of the width regulating member: maximum value of the depth of the product passage D: diameter of the product   The vending machine attachment according to claim 1, wherein the width regulating member has flexibility.   3. The automatic width control device according to claim 1, wherein the width regulating member includes two opposing resin plates and an elastic member sandwiched between the resin plates and capable of following a surface shape of the resin plate. 4. Attachment for vending machines.   The vending machine attachment according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the width regulating member is swingable in a direction parallel to a width direction of the fixing member.   The attachment for a vending machine according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the width regulating member is supported by the fixing member with a rivet.   The attachment for a vending machine according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the fixing member has a magnet.   7. The fixing member according to claim 1, wherein the fixing member has a hook portion that hooks on a meandering plate configuring the product passage or a tray provided at an upper end entrance of the product passage. 8. Attachment for vending machine described.   The vending machine attachment according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the fixing member has a side wall.   9. The vending machine attachment according to claim 1, wherein the merchandise passage is a merchandise passage in a second row and thereafter. 10.   The attachment for a vending machine according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the posture control plate is biased so as to protrude toward the product passage.

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